Discuss Fall Foliage in Vermont, when to come, where to stay, where to take a tour etc. Note: You must be registered in order to post. If you have trouble registering, use the contact us form on Scenes of Vermont's home page.

My friends would like to spend a long weekend (Thursday to Sunday) in New England in the third weekend of October (18th-21st).

They are flexible in term of location. They have a 2 year old toddler, so they would like a place in which they could do some easy hiking, and with a town with some restaurants/stores to conveniently stay with their kid.

I assume south VT and Western MA could be some good options to see colours in that period.

Any specific suggestion for a place to stay and some hiking suggestions doable with a toddler?

They just want to enjoy the fall atmosphere in some nice little town, and do not necessarily want to drive too much to chase the colours since they are with their little boy

Hi Triz! The first thing that comes to mind is Woodstock! They would all love Billings Farm! The town is really walkable with great shops and eateries. Here is the link to Billings Farm, do check out the events, etc.:

Colors in that time frame (October 18 -21) are probably gone in almost all of VT (known as "stick season"). the one exception that seems to turn late is the "route 7 corridor" from Rutland north to Burlington. BM might have some specific ideas about small towns in that area that would be especially good for toddlers. Middlebury is very nice and has a decent Vermont feel - not sure about toddler activities. Burlington is a fun city but doesn't have the "small town" feel of some other places. While Woodstock is very nice, it tends to be expensive and unless the foliage season is unusually late, the leaves in Woodstock will be gone.Good luck!!

Triz! Thank you for the kind words! I love helping people enjoy Vermont as much as I do! I found another awesome venue for your friends with the little one just steps away outside of Woodstock. It is the Vermont Institute of Natural Science (VINS). bm and I went there and there were lots of kids around and it was quite an adventure! Lots of raptors and reptiles and you can watch the feedings if you come at the right time. Fascinating! Here is the link! It is in Quechee. Another spot to keep that toddler busy and running around. The Nature Center is awesome!

I checked around Woodstock, many places slip into "off season rates" that weekend but it does not mean the color is gone. You can drive around the SE quadrant and still see some nice foliage. I go up to Vermont every weekend in October after my "big trip" and have been amazed at what I find on the back roads.

I'll continue to search for "kid friendly" activities in the Woodstock area but the above links will prove to be quite exciting for the family if they indeed choose the area!

The Champlain Valley usually has some color at that time. Lots and lots of fun stuff to do with kids. Stay in Shelburne, Burlington, South Burlington or Williston.Shelburne Farms is amazing. Hiking at Mount Philo State Park. Echo on the Burlington waterfront. Church Street in Burlington is fun.

Missed the small town part. Shelburne or Middlebury. In Middlebury, the child may like seeing the horses at the Morgan Horse Farm. Good toddler friendly hiking up in Ripton at the Robert Frost Trail. Also the Lake Pleiad trial.

i would say, based on my experience during the previous 17 (!) autumns in woodstock, that the color probably will be gone in woodstock by the time of your visit. there may be color still on some back roads out of town, but i would not count on it.

color or not, woodstock is an interesting place for adults to visit. as CT notes, there are places to eat, and a fair number of stores. the architecture throughout the town, especially on the green, is classic new england. there is also great domestic new england architecture across the river, on river street and on mountain avenue, which many visitors miss. small children may be less charmed, although my recollection is two year olds do not care much about where they are as long as someone is paying attention to them.

I have taken my grandchildren to the raptor center and to billings farm. i think those places are best for children who are five to ten years old. you might consider sugarbush farm, which has some farm animals that kids can see and, unlike billings farm and the raptor center, is free. so, for that matter, is the spendid woodstock green, and at a certain age there is nothing as entertaining as a pile of leaves, a few sticks, or a busy squirrel.

the thing my grandchildren like best in woodstock is the ice cream shop directly below the mountain creamery, on central street. in the event all else fails, there is a good selection of toys in the drug store, also on central street.